


Dark Places

by neverending_shenanigans



Series: Cullenmance-Fusion-Bingo [2]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - The Mummy Fusion, F/M, I'm Bad At Titles, Purple Hawke (Dragon Age), Very Much everyone's favourite The Mummy (1999) scene in fusion form, Warden Carver Hawke, you know exactly which scene i mean don't even kid yourself
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2020-11-23
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:07:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27690470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neverending_shenanigans/pseuds/neverending_shenanigans
Summary: Cullen is not in a good place. Mentally or literally. As a templar-gone-mercenary he is helping an expedition get to a dwarven thaig that some thought long lost. But he is very much distracted by the - slightly tipsy - company he keeps.
Relationships: Female Hawke/Cullen Rutherford
Series: Cullenmance-Fusion-Bingo [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2014525
Comments: 1
Kudos: 2





	Dark Places

> _No light, no light in your bright blue eyes_   
>  _I never knew daylight could be so violent_   
>  _A revelation in the light of day_   
>  _You can't choose what stays and what fades away_

* * *

“I know what you’ve been wondering about all day.”

Cullen looked up from the sword he had been sharpening. Before him stood Marian Hawke in all her glory, with a bottle of wine in one hand and a wide grin on her face. She was staggering a little, and then she flopped down on the ground opposite of him.

“And what is that?”

“What is a fabulous place like me doing in a dark girl like this?” With a flourish, she opened her arms wide, gesturing to the stone walls of the ancient dwarven Thaig around them. Marian Hawke’s stunning blue eyes were gleaming with mischief, and Cullen wasn’t sure if she was as drunk as she seemed to be, or if this was an act.

Well, she wasn’t wrong, at the very least. This absolutely was a very dark place. What he was wondering about was more what _he_ was doing here, though.

This whole dig seemed like a mistake to him. He had joined because something was in this Thaig that shouldn’t be here. Ever since the sealed door hat been discovered and broken, people claimed to have nightmares of gleaming red eyes. In his experience, that could mean two things: a demon or someone spreading tales of a demon to keep treasure. Finding either was alright for him. There was preciously little else he could use his Templar abilities for these days.

But he wasn’t sure what he thought of the company it entailed. He likely wouldn’t have taken this job if he had known beforehand. And he had no qualms admitting that.

He returned the sword to its sheathe and took the bottle she was holding out to him now. “Something like that.” He placed the bottle at his side. “I’ve been wondering what _either_ of you are here for, exactly.”

Marian looked to her brother, who was on the ground, sleeping next to the fire. She leaned over, and pushed the hair out of his face. “Carver? He’s here because he has daddy issues, don’t let him fool you. He says it’s because it’s his job as a big, strong Grey Warden to make the Thaigs of Kirkwall safe, but he really wants to be like Daddy.” She looked up at Cullen, with a smile that did not match her words.

Oh, yes. Cullen knew the stories. Everyone in Kirkwall did. The great explorer Malcolm Hawke went missing in an ancient dwarven thaig, hunting for some proof of an ancient Tevinter Magister. He never returned, one of the great mysteries of Kirkwall to this day. Now he felt like an ass for having brought it up.

Marian carried on, none the wiser to his thoughts. “And itty bitty Carver somehow seems to think that we’ll find Daddy dearest, somehow. He’s and idiot, isn’t he?” In contrast to the exasperation in her voice, there was genuine fondness on her face. She leaned over, and planted a sloppy kiss on her brother’s brow. True to what Cullen had seen of the siblings so far, Carver frowned even in his sleep.

Cullen had barely interacted with the young lad. For someone who had seemed so sure that this Thaig was somehow cursed, he sure slept soundly. But maybe that was why Marian had made him drink so much of that Antivan wine – to help him sleep the sleep of the righteous? He wouldn’t put it past her. On the contrary.

Which brought him back to the fact that he didn’t buy her act for one second. She’d been playing the sarcastic, fool-hardy adventurer who was just in it for the gold the past few days. She had audibly counted the worth of every stone they had turned. But there was more to her, his gut told him. And he had learned to trust his gut, if no one else.

It was time to put this to the test, though, if they were to venture forth in this endeavour together. So Cullen uncrossed his arms, slowly. “Him, I understand. Even your friend, Varric, I understand. He needs money, I heard of him and his brother. If there’s treasure, they aren’t far. It’s _you_ I don’t get.”

This made her laugh. A loud, unlady-like cackle, really. She slid over to his side. “Oh, you’re buying that? The story Varric spins? Shit, don’t tell him that. He’d be too pleased with himself. I’ll tell you his little secret, too, if you’d like.” She leaned over, holding herself steady against his shoulder, and Cullen smelled the alcohol on her breath. It strangely wasn’t entirely repulsive. “He’s a softie. He’s doing it to protect his own brother.”

Cullen frowned. Underneath all the snide side commentary, there was probably genuinely useful information. “Bartrand. Yes, I heard of him. He is not part of this dig, though, as far as I know?”

Marian shook her head. “He isn’t. He’s part of a rival dig, who thunk they found a better entrance. Bartrand does this whole spiel where he pretends to be an ‘expert’ and ‘guardian of old treasures’ so people pay him to rob tombs and protect them from curses. It’s ridiculous that people buy into it. Varric and his brother are the un-dwarviest dwarves to ever dwarf. Aside from the chest hair, maybe. Varric hates the act, but what can you do. Family, huh?”

Then, she blinked, and Cullen could practically see her losing her train of thought. “Oh, did I mention. Varric is technically a very distant cousin? The Hawke’s have dwarf blood, supposedly. But if we bank on that, we might as well call ourselves Tevinter. Because the Amell’s are technically kinda distantly Tevinter Magisters. Amori, or something, was the name. Ancient as balls, though.” She shook her head, looking up at him. “But what the hell is the use of all that distant family crap if your actual, real family isn’t around, right?”

Something in his gut told him that those last words were the first actual genuine thing she had said. For a heartbeat, there was actual sorrow there, and Cullen couldn’t help think of Mia. He swallowed.

And then, with another lazy blink, Marian leaned forward. “Wait. Where was I going with this, anyway?”

Cullen swallowed. He did see her eyes somehow focus in on his lips. “You were going to explain to me why Varric is protecting his brother.”

“Oh, right,” she yawned, and the building tension seemed momentarily broken. “So, that other dig Bartrand’s involved in is not with the good kind of people, obviously. Bartrand knows how to pick 'em, always has. They’re a bit…” she twirled her index finger next to her head. “They believe in this whole tale of red eyes and the tomb of a cursed Tevinter magister down there. Varric doesn’t care about gold, he just wants to get there first. Because, you know,…” she shrugged.

Cullen frowned. “Let’s say I don’t know?”

“Well, in case there is no treasure and they try to fuck Bertrand up. Wouldn’t be the first time someone blames the messenger. And let’s be honest here, there’s a good chance we will find absolutely zilch.”

“I take it you don’t believe in the story,” Cullen remarked drily.

Again, Marian laughed. She leaned across his lap, to grab the bottle again, but one of her arms was still slung across his shoulder. “Maker, no. If I can see it and I can touch it, _then_ it’s real. What about you?” She leaned back, took a big swig from the bottle, and winked at him. “Need me to protect you from the evil spirits trapped here?”

“That’s a nice offer. Is that why you are here? To protect your brother and your friend?”

At that, Marian paused, licking her lip. This time, she smiled, and it seemed almost genuine. “Oh, you’re good at this. Questioning me and avoiding the answer? Very smart. Kind of sexy.” She offered him the bottle, once more. “Drink up and I might tell you.”

The stakes seemed fair to him. And while he had succeeded in questioning her, she had succeeded in intriguing him. This time, he did raise the bottle to his lips. He took a big gulp. It was too sweet for him and he couldn’t help make a face. Marian was laughing with delight, as if she had anticipated his distaste for the stuff. “I am here,…” she said, leaning in again. “... to kiss you and ravish your curls and drag you into the dark with me, where I will absolutely corrupt your pure little soul.”

He sputtered, choking on the wine. _Maker’s breath._ Why had she delivered the last one practically into his ears, as a whisper? Then she leaned back, with a cheerful, triumphant sort of smile.

“And because I am expert on Ancient Dwarven runes. But that’d better remain a secret, because being a book worm would ruin my reputation. So mainly the kissing thing. You game or what?”

Cullen cleared his throat, feeling the blush creep on. Damn this Marian Hawke. His guts had been right. She was the dangerous sort.

**Author's Note:**

> This shall (sadly) most likely also not be continued, so for those of you interested here is a brief summary of what i had in mind:  
> Solas is busy waking Corypheus up, but they need a certain old bloodline to release him, which they are trying to draw in. They are terorizing the Free Marches with dreams of red eyes, which only some people seem to get. Malcolm indeed was called down but when he realised what was going on he ended his own life. Carver feels the pull stronger (because Grey Warden) and does indeed release Corypheus, who begins regenerating. Cullen and Marian fight to put him back again, Marian saves all of them not just with her fabulousness and charm but her amazing language skills. And then they smooch. (Duh.)
> 
> In terms of fusion:  
> Dwarven Thaig as Pyramid substitute. Corypheus and Solas kinda both are Imhotep, maybe. Cullen is a bit of a burnt-out templar-gone-merc (very much taking the place of rick), Marian is mix of Evie and Jonathan i should think, Varric is also Rick (because why not), Bartrand is Beni. The company Bartrand is leading down are Danarius and cohorts with a still enslaved Fenris, who would end up freed in a dramatic sideplot.


End file.
